The Weather Channel Dubs Wichita Falls The #1 Worst Summer City Of 2011

It's no secret here in Wichita Falls that this summer has been excruciatingly hot, dry and miserable. I bet you can't event count the number of times you burned your hand on your car door handle, and I'm pretty sure we have all mastered the art of steering with one finger.

Erdman explains, "In our rankings, I not only considered the magnitude and severity of the impacts, but also the longevity."

That longevity factor is what sealed the deal for Wichita Falls. As of September 13th we have had 100 days of triple-digit heat, with a record setting 52 of those days running consecutively. Wichita Falls broke the previous triple-digit temperature record weeks ago, which was 79 days set in 1980. An average summer in Wichita Falls normally only sees about 28 days of 100+ temperatures.

There was no easing into these miserable temperatures either, our first 100 degree day came on April 6th - over two months before summer's official arrival date of June 21st.

Adding insult to injury this summer, was the worst drought Wichita Falls has seen since the 1950s. According to The Weather Channel, through mid-September, Wichita Falls had yet to receive 4 inches of total precipitation (rain/melted snow) for the entire year-to-date, a mere 18% of our average precipitation-to-date.